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It was also an interesting choice to use shots that showed the process of how the CGI effects of the crack were created in post-production in the midst of the end credits. This sort of reminded me of Jackie Chan’s trademark of using outtakes over the credits in his films. It’s not too bad of an idea, but on the one hand it can sort of look like showing off. It’s definitely not at the level of, say, George Lucas-type showing off, but I always look at CGI from the angle of Jurassic Park. When the idea of using CGI to create the dinosaurs was initially proposed, Spielberg was skeptical. But after seeing some test footage, he was sold. However, the crew still created dinosaur models for some of the scenes, and Spielberg’s goal for the entire project was that the audience should not be able to tell whether the animals were CGI or models. And when you watch Jurassic Park, you really can’t tell – except for issues of practicality where the actors touch the animals or the entire creature is shown running somewhere. But still, I think Jurassic Park is one of the best examples of CGI out there.
Despite a few minor CGI issues, “Cracked” is really very impressive. And, perhaps a big plus, any deficiencies in the CGI itself could potentially be written off as just being images inside a madman’s mind.
Use of Audio
I really liked the music in this film. Not only did it serve the purpose of adding to the mood, as the frantic nature of the music matched well with Scott’s frenzied attempts to escape the “crack.” But perhaps the greatest hidden benefit was that it pretty well eliminated the need to record dialogue while shooting. This can save a lot of time, money, and hassles during production. This type of decision should only be made, however, if it will serve to enhance the film, because if it’s only done to save time and money, it will be glaringly obvious in the final project. Still, in this case, I think it was a good choice.
In addition, the sound effect noises used along with the crack also fit it quite well. This is the type of effect that could have easily been over- or under-done, but in this case it was appropriate. It was also at the proper volume so as to not drown out the music, or vice versa.
Use of Budget
Despite the multiple CGI effects, the majority of the budget for “Cracked” was spent on a home-made dolly, and travel expenses for cast and crew. My guess would be that the filmmakers already had access to the computer graphics software and decided to take advantage of it in making this short film. Not a bad idea at all!
Unfortunately, however, they apparently ended up not using the dolly that they spent so much of their budget on, and rather created the tracking sequences via computer. And though it’s impossible to compare whether which effect would have been better, it’s unfortunate that so much money was put to waste. (Though hopefully these filmmakers will still be able to use the dolly in future projects.)
Lasting Appeal
I really enjoyed watching this film. Perhaps its most intriguing aspect is that two people could take away two very different meanings from it. And this isn’t necessarily a bad thing either. I suppose I might have liked a little clearer picture in this regard, but it’s not really all that big of a deal.
Overall Comment
“Cracked” is a very interesting movie. It’s got some really good special effects, acting, and music. The story itself is well-told and concise without being overdone. All around, it’s a very entertaining film!
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Content |
8.8 |
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Visual
Look |
8.3 |
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Use
of Audio |
8.2 |
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Use
of Budget |
8.0 |
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Lasting
Appeal |
7.0 |
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Overall
Score |
8.0
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The
author of half a dozen screen plays, two novels, and a proficient
camera-woman in her own right, Monika
DeLeeuw-Taylor is Microfilmmaker's lead writing analyst and
one of our top film reviewers. When she's not writing a critique for
Microfilmmaker, she's writing screenplays for Viking Productions.
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